Gareth A Davies has been a sports journalist for The Daily Telegraph since 1993. He is Boxing and MMA Correspondent. Has been intrigued by fight and combat sports from a young age. Personal sporting passions are rugby, cricket, and martial arts. Also covers the Paralympic Games. Hates getting his hair cut. Follow on Twitter @GarethADaviesDT

Travis Browne: I tested for low testosterone but would not have TRT. It's an excuse…outlaw it

Travis Browne has low testosterone for his age. But is he doing anything about it ? No.

The heavyweight mixed martial artist, who had a stellar year in 2013 with three KOs against Gabriel Gonzaga, Alistair Overeem and Josh Barnett, lifting him to No 3 in the heavyweight rankings, underwent a full health check through blood tests recently, and was informed by his medical adviser that, for his age, he has low testosterone.

But he wouldn't change a thing and was adamant that he would not request Testosterone Replacement Therapy. He believes fighters and athletes should be what they are. No excuses, just live with it.

"They should outlaw it [TRT]," Browne told Telegraph Sport. "But it's not my job to go out there shouting that it should be that way. The way I look at these things is this: Jon Jones has an 84ins reach. I want an 84ins reach, let’s make it fair. But we can't do that. We are all physically different. Live with it."

Browne revealed to Telegraph Sport that he had only discovered the low testosterone as part of an overall health check. "I got tested. I did a full blood test to see where my body is, where the deficiencies might be, to see if I might be lacking in anything. They asked if I wanted my testosterone checked, too, so I said 'Sure, let's see where my T-levels are'. For my age, I am low. I could go and get TRT if I wanted to, but why ?"

"It’s going to give me an excuse to lose. I don’t need that. It’s mentally weak.I don’t care. I don’t care if I'm lower, here, higher there. I'm going to fight you either way. I'm going to punch you in the face either way."

Browne – who is here at UFC 170 in Las Vegas this weekend, where Ronda Rousey defends her UFC women's bantamweight title against former fellow Olympic medallist Sara McMann – two weeks into his training camp ahead of facing Fabricio Werdum in Orlando Florida, on April 19, in an eliminator for the UFC's heavyweight crown.

The Hawaiian took questions from UFC fans on Friday afternoon at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, ahead of the UFC 170 weigh-ins.
It was clear to see where his mindset is from the t-shirt he was wearing. That attitude carried through in the interview with Telegraph Sport.

"It's all about no f****** excuses. It ruins the moment making an excuse. And that's what TRT does. I had the hamstring when Bigfoot Silva beat me. But the hamstring I saw as an excuse. He beat me. I lost. Excuses are over. Excuses are a sign of weakness. I aim for this to be a great year for me…and right now I'm focused on beating Fabricio Werdum."